shouldnt the best musical....

[bwayguy2]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:11am

have also won creative awards? like book, score, and direction. i think so, but jersey boys didn't win any. i hardly post on here, havent since 03 but this ticked me off. now i didn't see it, and don't claim that things are better. i have no problem with actors winning, but the show itself should not have even been in the best musical category. a best musical nominee should have ALL the fixings, including an original score. and the leading actors speech was just a tad dramatic, don't you think? he didnt thank anyone, not even valli himself, who was there standing. doesn't the guy know he wouldnt have the gig if frankie didn't live the life? lord. this all seems like a sad attempt to raise 4 seasons hype. this show should have gotten up, taken the trophy, and handed it off to chaperone or purple while down on one knee. if the winner wasn't the color purple, it should have been chaperone or vice versa. they are the heart of this past seasons' musicals.

harry connik jr. does not have the voice to carry those songs and neither does the mouse that was up there with him. the cast of the wedding singer doing that choreography was laughable.

the featured women of the color purple were robbed. beth leval is great, but you play the chaperone once and i doubt she has to think much to do it 8x a week. the other roles, shug and sophia take heart and soul to play, esp. shug. she should have gotten that award.

the color purple should have gotten more. it's an important show that needs to be seen and rewarded. like it or not, you cannot deny the heart that is on display there nightly. they feel strongly about the story they tell, and it's done wonderfully.

congrats to chaperone though, no hard feelings towards a show that celebrates love of musical theatre and the power it has to make people happy.

god i had to say all of that.

ps- if i hear julie andrews talking about how she was chosen to play eliza one more time and how she won the tony, i'll hurl.

[blaxx]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:14am

The answer is no, otherwise there would just be one category.
The award goes to the PRODUCTION of that book, score, etc. so they can fall on different artists.

This is the reason why a director can win, but the production might not... meaning, the overall achievement is superior to the directorial skills, etc. amongst other category examples.

Updated On: 6/12/06 at 02:14 AM

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:18am

Coulda, woulda, shoulda.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:19am

Jersey Boys was ineligible for Original Score. It had a shot for direction and book, but Sweeney and Drowsy were frontrunners in those categories. However, I do think that Jersey Boys came in second (probably) in both categories. People seem to forget that the category of Best Musical is for the overall production, not necessarily for the best written show. What the Tonys this year have said is that Drowsy had the best book and score because it is entirely original, but Jersey was a more entertaining show. I found the show effective. Voters vote for things they enjoy, which is also why The Pajama Game won, even though John Doyle won for direction. Which is why Spamalot won, why Avenue Q won, why Hairspray won, etc. It's all a pattern and the voters didn't really break any new ground this year I thought.

~Steven

[bjh2114]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:19am

Just a clarification: Jersey Boys did win Best Lighting, and Julie Andrews has never won a Tony.

[jimnysf]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:22am

In film, the Best Picture of the Year does not always receive the Best Director or Best Writing Awards. It looks like the same goes for the Tonys. That's just the way these awards are all structured.

[bwayguy2]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:23am

right, she's won 3 for best actress in my fair lady, camelot, and victor/victoria. and lighting is a completely different department from score, book, and direction. lord.

[jimnysf]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:25am

Julie Andrews did not win a Tony for "Victor, Victoria". She had her name withdrawn from competition.

[blaxx]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:25am

bwayguy...please elaborate on the imaginary Tonys you claim Julie Andrews won.

[LucyVanPelt]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:29am

She didn't win for Victor/Victoria, Donna Murphy won that year for the revival of "King & I", stunning everyone. If you recall, Julie Andrews boycotted the Tony awards because Victor/Victoria only got one nomination, and that was hers, and she was truly pissed off!

[bjh2114]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:30am

"right, she's won 3 for best actress in my fair lady, camelot, and victor/victoria. and lighting is a completely different department from score, book, and direction. lord."

Woah, no need to get snippy. I thought you were listing book, direction, and score as examples of creative awards, but lumping set, costumes, and lighting in there as well, considering they are creative awards. My fault, didn't understand you were restricting it to those. Also, Julie Andrews has NEVER won a Tony!!!

Edit: She lost for My Fair Lady in 1957 to Judy Holliday for Bells are Ringing, and she lost for Camelot to Elizabeth Seal (Irma La Douce) in 1961. Updated On: 6/12/06 at 02:30 AM

[jimnysf]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:31am

Julie Andrews
Awards She has never won a Tony.

1996 Tony Award® Best Actress in a Musical
Victor / Victoria [nominee] Refused to accept the nomination

1996 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actress in a Musical
Victor / Victoria [winner]

1993 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Julie Andrews [nominee] ( for "Putting It Together" )

1961 Tony Award® Best Actress in a Musical
Camelot [nominee]

1957 Tony Award® Best Actress in a Musical
My Fair Lady [nominee]

1955 Theatre World Award
The Boy Friend [winner]

[blaxx]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:31am

She won in his dreams

[Vespertine1228]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:35am

Wait a minute. How is it possible that Julie Andrews has never won a Tony? I had no idea that was true until tonight. Craziness.

[blaxx]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:38am

My mom says EXACTLY the same thing about me!

She might have won for Victor / Victoria, but she declined the nomination... oh well, she doesn't really need any more recognition.

[bjh2114]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:38am

Yup, everyone just assumes that she has. But her time has never come, which is unfortunate since she is brilliant.

[bwayguy2]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:38am

im just a swing vespertine. perhaps if i spent my days on this site arguing about awards and bad shows i would be able to tell you

[bjivie2]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:47am

It's not the first time this has happened. Remember Into the Woods vs. Phantom? Urinetown vs. Thoroughly Modern Millie?

[C is for Company]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:50am

So why don't you argue about good shows instead?

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 2:58am

Lighting is in a different field as writing, true. But it does add to the overall effect of the production, which is what the Best Musical category awards. Same with orchestrations. Doyle's Sweeney would not have worked were it not for Sarah Travis. Sometimes these technical categories are what draw an individual or a crowd to see and like a show. For example, the lighting and orchestrations in Piazza totally won me over last season and those alone would have made me vote for it for Best Musical. That is, if I were a voter. I take classes with people majoring in technical theatre and it is shows like The Lion King that inspire them to keep designing. There is much more to a production of a musical than its writing.

~Steven

[that opera diva]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 3:51am

My question is:

Shoudn't the best musical have to be eligible for best score? You will never convince me that a musical that is not eligible for "Best Score" i.e. Best Music, should be allowed to win Best Musical. NEVER NEVER NEVER. Remember "Contact"winning a few years ago? JUST WRONG. Both are great shows, but just shouldn't be considered for the best musical category. A best musical is a flawless combination of music, dance, and acting. If a musical cannot fulfill all three parts, it should not be eligible for the category. It's like a tri-athelete completing only two parts of the triathalon and using the winning time of a past runner for the third part. It wouldn't fly. Neither should this.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 4:58am

There is a reason why the prize for Best Musical is awarded to the producers. Because it's an award for the best production of a musical. The score and book awards are there because a well-written show may have been helmed and produced horribly, but the show will be awarded for its writing. In the same way, a production may not have the best written script, but the way it was directed, acted, designed, etc. may have made it the best show to see of that season.

It's very silly to say, "A best musical is a flawless combination of music, dance, and acting. If a musical cannot fulfill all three parts, it should not be eligible for the category." Say that to Sweeney and many of Sondheim's shows which require absolutely no dancing. Or Crazy for You, which didn't have an original score. Bob Martin would now be ineligible because he doesn't sing.

A musical is also about the book, the visual and aural design, the audience, financials, marketing, advertising, politics, etc. There are so many factors that go into a musical and producing it on Broadway. To limit the criteria on how a best musical is chosen is merely impossible. Everyone has their own personal opinions, not to mention hidden agendas. It's probably not fair, but try to find a solution.

~Steven

[Jon]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 5:35am

Let's see - if you had to have an original score to be eligible for Best Musical, that would have eliminated the following winners:

FOSSE
CONTACT
CRAZY FOR YOU
JEROME ROBBINS' BROADWAY

[jwsel]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 5:57am

Don't forget Ain't Misbehavin'. I also seem to recall that 42nd Street wasn't eligible for Original Score the year it won.

[Fiction Writer]

Posted: 6/12/06 at 6:05am

There's a clip on youtube.com of Julie's little speech at the Tonys, and why she can't accept the nomination.

Quite the little hissy fit, I'd say.